MCA: Primavera 2014

Artwork by Paul Yore. Pic Joy Minter
Inset image- Artwork by Paul Yore. Pic Joy Minter. Featured image- Nupta Contagioso  by Madison Bycroft

The very popular annual PRIMAVERA is on again at the Museum of Contemporary Art, featuring thirteen young Australian artists. Primavera began in 1992, and many of its previous contributing artists have gone on to enjoy national and international careers. This year the exhibition is curated by Primavera alumni Mikala Dwyer who said of the experience:

“I am privileged to have travelled to parts of Australia I have never been to in the process of curating Primavera for the MCA, visiting and viewing the work of many brilliant young artists.

“When I think through the work of the artists I’ve selected for Primavera, all sorts of ideas, interests and associations pop up, including Surrealism, robotics, queer fertility, ritual, time, witchcraft, science, alchemy, dreaming and telepathy.”

Last September when I reported on French artist Annette Messager whose work is still on exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, I asked ‘is it art?’ When we are in a gallery we take it for granted that what we are there to see is art, and are often challenged in terms of mediums presented as art and different concepts of art.

PRIMAVERA 2014 is no exception in terms of using a variety of mediums including digital images and interactive pieces and some wonderfully creative works like Ben Denham’s drawing machine. I have to admit, I liked the more traditional artwork, including the whimsical pieces by Paul Yore, whose collage-like tapestries are stunning, and sometimes provocative.

His larger than life phallus image is covered with the names of philosophers, writers and artists. Yore’s inclusion in the exhibition raised some eyebrows as he had charges of child pornography laid against him after his 2013 exhibition at the Linden Centre of Contemporary Art. (Charges were dismissed last month). His tapestries are fantastic and tell intriguing if conflicting stories.

Featuring work by Madison Bycroft (SA), Ben Denham (NSW), Nick Dory (NSW) Caitlin Franzman (QLD), Hossein Ghaemi (NSW), Emily Hunt (NSW), Ishmael Marika (NT), Barayuwa Munungurr (NT), Sean Peoples and Veronica Kent (The Telepathy Project, VIC), Alison Puruntatameri (NT), Lucienne Rickard (TAS), Marian Tubbs (NSW) and Paul Yore (VIC).

This is a free exhibition and is on until 30 November, for more: www.mca.com.au/

This article was first published in http://www.the buzzfromsydney.com